~ Building strong, joy-filled marriages

Monthly Archives: January 2017

Last week, we summarized St. John Paul II’s vision of marriage preparation where parents have the primary responsibility to prepare their children for marriage (remote preparation from birth to young adult). The example of their marriage, both good and bad, shapes their children’s understanding of marriage and shows them how to live out this important vocation. Is your marriage a good and holy example for your children? If some areas could stand improvement, do not lose heart. It is never too late to start living your marriage as God intends, loving your spouse as Christ loves His Bride, the Church.

But what is love? The word is used in so many different ways today that it has lost its true meaning. We say that we “love sports,” “love traveling,” or “love to eat.” The intimate union of a man and woman in the martial embrace has been reduced to “making love.” This same phrase is also used to describe sex between any number of consenting adults, or between adults and children, or even between children, including individuals of the same sex. It is no wonder that our society is confused on the true meaning of love.

“Marriage preparation has to be seen and put into practice as a gradual and continuous process.”

St. John Paul II wrote these words in Familiaris Consortio (On the Christian Family in the Modern World). In this exhortation, he introduced the concept of a three-stage marriage preparation process: remote, proximate and immediate (Familiaris Consortio, 66). In a previous blog post, we briefly described the three stages and discussed what constitutes proper marriage preparation according to Canon law. .

These words which were proclaimed by Pope Paul VI in the Vatican II encyclical Gaudium et Spes (Pastoral Constitution On The Church In The Modern World) became the foundation of the writings of Pope St. John Paul II on marriage and family.

Back in November of last year, we issued a clarion call to pray for marriages and families. We encouraged you to organize a prayer ministry at your local parish in support of this challenge.

Our home parish, Our Lady of Good Counsel in Plymouth, Michigan is doing just that. In his homily for the Solemnity of the Blessed Virgin Mary, the Mother of God, Pastor Fr. John Riccardo reflects on events from the past year and proposes that parishioners continue to set aside Wednesdays as days of fasting and prayer for marriages, families, priests and religious.